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USC Scripter Award nominates ‘Captain Phillips,’ ‘Philomena’ …

This USC Scripter Award, now in its 26th year, honors films adapted from novels, short stories, comic books, journalism, and other screenplays with both the source material and the adapted screenplay feted. This year the nominees are “Captain Phillips,” “Philomena,” “The Spectacular Now,” “12 Years a Slave,” and “What Maisie Knew.”

Notably left out was Oscar contender “The Wolf of Wall Street,” adapted by Terence Winter from Jordan Belfort‘s memoir.

As it excludes stage-to-screen adaptations and foreign-language films, the Scripter has forecast just nine of the eventual Oscar champs, but five of those instances were recent: “Argo” last year, “The Descendants” (2011), “The Social Network” (2010), “Slumdog Millionaire” (2008), and “No Country for Old Men” (2007). The other repeat winners were “A Beautiful Mind” (2001), “L.A. Confidential” (1997), “Sense and Sensibility” (1995) and “Schindler’s List” (1993).

In 2011, three of the five Scripter nominees went on to Oscar bids: “Moneyball” and “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” joined double-winner “The Descendants,” along with two films left out by the academy: “A Dangerous Method” and “Jane Eyre.”

In 2010, “The Social Network” faced three of the other four Scripter nominees — “127 Hours,” “True Grit” and “Winter’s Bone” — at the Oscars. The fifth Scripter contender, “The Ghost Writer,” was edged out at the Oscars by “Toy Story 3” which was ineligible for consideration here.

In 2009, “Up in the Air” prevailed with the Scripter jury over three of its competitors at the Oscars — “District 9,” “An Education” and “Precious” — as well as “Crazy Heart.” The fifth Oscar nominee was the adapted script for “In the Loop.” However, it was “Precious” that eventually won over academy voters.